GADSDEN COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) — A difficult weekend for the Gadsden County Sheriff's Office as police departments from around the county investigate 15 overdoses, five of those resulting in death, possibly from Fentanyl.
"We suspect that this was due to some type of opioid poisoning such as Fentanyl," said Sheriff Morris Young.
Two of those deaths happened in Quincy while just a few miles down the road, another death in Gretna with the two other deaths being in Chattahoochee and Havana.
"Speaking with DEA, there's a different type Fentanyl, they tell me it's 1000 times more potent than just regular fentanyl," said Sheriff Young.
According to the DEA, just 2mg of fentanyl is considered to be a lethal dose.
The CDC says just last year 71,238 Americans died from the drug, that number rising over 13,000 from just 2020.
Hearing about what's happening just over the county line, the Leon County Sheriff's Office started a new educational campaign Saturday night.
"We wanted to be proactive to warn citizens the dangers of Fentanyl, these drugs are being mixed in with other drugs and we just want everyone to be aware and to be cautious," said Lt. Torrance Henderson of the Leon County Sheriff's Office.
Lieutenant Torrance Henderson says deputies from Leon County spent Saturday night visiting over 30 bars and clubs, educating businesses and patrons the dangers of fentanyl and illegal drugs.
Handing out these flyers that say drugs like cocaine, marijuana, Xanax and Heroine can be laced with Fentanyl.
While LCSO says they're not aware of a dramatic increase in Leon County like what Gadsden County is seeing, they want the public to know about the dangers happening just a few miles away.
"It is, I mean it's just a five to 10 minute drive," said Lt. Henderson.
